Connemara Cask Strength

I’ve liked everything I’ve had from Connemara thus far, and when looking around the internet indicated this had been discontinued, I was disappointed I might not get to try it. After a few hurdles I managed to track down a bottle in a store in my state, though not super close. When I got there I ended up buying the two they had to make the trip seem more worth it, and then I’d have an extra. Either I really like it and avoid being sad I didn’t get the other bottle, or I don’t much care for it and someday can make someone who wants it happy. Which of those scenarios will it be?

Connemara Cask Strength, Ireland Single Malt, 57.9% ABV

Minutia: Matured in ex-Bourbon casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Deep gold, 0.8.

Nose: Classic Connemara petrichor, clean rubber, apple. Like rubber that was cleaned with an apple scented agent (but not chemically smelling).

Taste: Wet river stones, very big pepper, peat.

Finish: Tick up in intensity, smoky rubber, pepper.

So, this is not for everyone. If the rubbery notes would be unappealing to you, this would be a disaster. To me, I like them because they do go well with the rest, particularly the stony, petrichor elements, and overall I do quite like this. I’m glad to have the second bottle, but if I came across someone who loved it and was disappointed it was gone, or was really looking to try it, I’d be comfortable selling it to them for what it cost me.

Score: 89

SMWS Name: An anorak in the orchard before the fall

Top 10 Whiskies of 2019

This post is about the Top 10 Whiskies I tried over the course of 2019, all just fantastic. I thought it would be fun to just check and see what I enjoyed most over the course of the year. It has to do with when I took notes on them, not when they were released. These are not in any particular order. Ledaig 10 Caol Ila 12 2006 Signatory Vintage Ledaig 12 Present Future Octomore 7.2 Octomore 9.3 Laphroaig Cairdeas 2017 Port Charlotte 10 Connemara 12 Kilkerran Heavily Peated Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost & Rare Port Ellen

Connemara Turf Mór

Connemara being essentially a peated Scotch produced in Ireland – my preferred beverage and the land of my heritage, respectively – the brand appealed a lot to me. The standard NAS expression and the 12 year are readily enough available near me, but when I learned of a heavily peated expression and couldn’t get a hold of it locally, it was all the more tantalizing. I ended up ordering it from Europe and finally got around to opening and reviewing it. Here’s the results.

Connemara Turf Mór, Ireland Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Matured in ex-Bourbon casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Straw fields.

Nose: Bright green apple (the flavor of green apple is bright, not the flavor of an apple which is bright green), petrichor, aromatic smoke.

Taste: Wood, intense barbecue, fruit medley.

Finish: Peat, smoke, rubber, salt.

Very good up until the rubber at the end. It’s not enough to ruin it, but it’s a bit off-putting.

Score: 87

Connemara 22

Already enough of a fan of the Connemara brand, I was very happy to be able to try this very well aged variety. 

Connemara 22, Ireland Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Aged in ex-Bourbon casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn, rested about 10 minutes.

Color: Gold.

Nose: Apple, vanilla, orange, wood.

Taste: Smoke, malt, bright fruit, citrus.

Finish: Short, fruity malt.

Overall, I found this to be an excellent whiskey. The cask influence was there, the spirit was good, the peat from the malting had some influence as well. The 12 year is the sweet spot of this for me so far, as I liked the smokiness there which became a bit more muted here with the 10 extra years of aging. I’d really like to see some different age-stated expressions from Connemara, and possibly even some different finishes.

Score: 86

Connemara Distillers Edition

I was intrigued about Connemara being a peated Irish whiskey, trying to recreate how whiskey would have been when peat was the fuel source on the island, and I particularly enjoyed the 12 year expression. I was interested in how it was finished in Sherry casks.

Connemara Distillers Edition, Ireland Single Malt, 43% ABV

Minutia: Matured in ex-Bourbon casks, finished in Sherry casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn, rested about 10 minutes. 

Color: Bright gold.

Nose: Sweet fruit, like there’s honey there. Soft, pine-like smoke.

Taste: Earthy, Irish malt, gingery spice.

Finish: Long, smokiest part of the dram, clove.

It’s a bit more interesting that the standard expression but falls short of the longer-aged varieties.

Score: 82

Connemara 12

Not too long after I learned I very much enjoyed the standard bottling of Connemara, I noticed while at the Dead Rabbit that they had others and had to try one since a bottle is a bit outside my price range without knowing what I’m in for. This was enjoyed and reviewed neat in the wee hours on June 10, 2018, and then with a single ice cube. It was revisited at the same establishment on February 9, 2019 in the early evening neat, and then with a few drops of water.

Connemara 12, Ireland Single Malt, 40% ABV

Color: Pale gold.

Nose: Peat. Maybe molasses. Citrus. Maybe that’s cheese?

Taste: A bit dry, hard and harsh; somewhat hot and a bit herbal; not really malty; a bit oaky, peppery and salty; fairly peaty and spicy; smoky; a bit sweet and woody. I get an overwhelming sense of meat before swallowing.

Finish: The meat from the palate turns into smoke. It’s medium to long.

This tastes like the standard NAS bottling, but more like scotch. It is more enjoyable than that one. The ice ultimately made it harder and less palatable. Drops of water seemed to add (or possibly just emphasize) a scent of acetone in the nose. The palate and finish were not as negative as the ice cube and it remained largely the same, with all elements a bit muted and the finish shortened. Revisiting this from a definitively sober and clean palate changed my review and raised its rating (initially an 89). The first time around, while I thought it was better than the NAS expression, I didn’t think it was quite worth roughly double the price. Now I think it just may be. My anticipation for the other expressions from Connemara, while already high, has gone way up.`

Score: 91

Connemara

It’s been a while since I’ve known I’m an Islay guy. Being of Irish origin, when I learned there was a peated Irish single malt, I had to give it a go. This was enjoyed and reviewed on February 20, 2018, International Pipe Smoking Day, outside at home on an unseasonably warm February afternoon alongside a pipe. The notes were all taken before lighting the pipe to avoid any impact on my palate.

Connemara NAS, Ireland Single Malt, 40% ABV

Color: Gold.

Nose: Sweet, light, low peat.

Taste: A bit dry; a bit herbal; a bit hot; a bit herbal and malty; a bit oaky and peaty; a bit salty; a bit spicy; a bit soft and creamy and sweet; a bit smoky and woody.

Finish: Smoke, Irish whiskey, grassy, not comparable to Scotch, but in the same vein.

This quickly became a favorite for a flask. It’s quite enjoyable on its own, adds a pleasant smokiness to something if you mix it in (this made iced tea taste delightfully smoky), and it’s mild enough for sharing. 

Score: 80